Second Try Idol

Chapter 370: Choose (13)

“We’re going to be their teachers? What for?”

We were confused because there were no guest mentors in the first season of Pick We Up. The most we had was seniors from each group’s company coming by to give some brief guidance. Our seniors Allure had done this for us.

But this time, it seemed like there was going to be a whole episode dedicated to us mentoring the trainees as one-day teachers.

“You won’t be giving professional instruction or anything like that. Just watch the trainees practice and give appropriate feedback,” Su-Hwan explained.

“Oh, that’s a relief. I was worried about what we’d be teaching.”

“Not all of you will appear at once. One or two members per episode will participate, and those who appear will watch from the panel seats on the day of the performance.”

“That sounds fun!” Jin-Sung exclaimed and his eyes lit up with excitement. He was clearly thrilled at the prospect of having juniors to mentor. It was like seeing a kid get a new puppy. He was practically bouncing in his seat. “When does it start?”

“Filming starts next month. The trainees began practicing last month,” Su-Hwan replied with a nod.

“Oh, what’s the new group’s name?”

A small smile appeared on his lips. “It’s Sequence. The members decided by vote.”

Su-Hwan answered the questions about the new group and then moved on to explaining our album preparation process.

“Since this is the beginning of a new universe, the style of the songs will change. But we will maintain the high difficulty level of your choreographies.”

“We trust the company. We will just work hard,” I assured him, feeling a surge of determination. It was always exciting to start working on a new project, even if it was a little daunting.

“As the interest in Chronos continues to grow, let’s make this the best album yet. Next up, Team Leader, please.”

Su-Hwan looked at Team Leader Lee, whom he had brought over from YMM to oversee all the artists in our label, not just Chronos. “Yes, since YMM has created a separate label to manage idol groups, we plan to gradually increase collaborations between our label’s artists.”

“Collaborations?”

The first thing that came to mind was YU Entertainment, a major agency known for its numerous idol collaborations. Every year, they released a joint album and donated the proceeds.

Until now, YMM had mostly solo artists aside from Allure and Chronos, so there wasn’t much reason for collaboration due to minimal connections. But with three idol groups now under the label, and all of them closely connected, there was plenty of potential for joint content.

The Rings also loved seeing us with Allure. Therefore, we might even end up doing video shoots, albums, or concerts together.

“We are considering releasing a Christmas carol song with Allure, Chronos, and Sequence at the end of the year. By then, Sequence will be wrapping up their time on Pick We Up Two and preparing for their debut.”

“We’d be all for it. Our fans on Q-App and BlueBird have been asking about it,” Goh Yoo-Joon added, his enthusiasm evident.

“I will say it’s just in the planning stages for now. Sequence’s debut depends on how well they do on Pick We Up Two,” Su-Hwan clarified by closing his notebook and signaling the end of the discussion.

“That’s the plan for now. Things are going to get busier. We need to prepare for the album and year-end stages after the comeback. Tae-Seong, please make sure to manage everyone’s condition well.”

“Okay.”

“Good work, everyone. Chronos, you can go back to practice. Hyun-Woo, can you stay for a bit?” Su-Hwan added, turning his gaze to me.

“Me?” I paused. I was about to stand up with the others, but I sat back down. I felt a bit nervous.

Su-Hwan smiled at me, but it wasn’t just a happy smile. It seemed a bit apologetic, like he was about to deliver some difficult news.

***

After the other members left, only the staff and I remained in the meeting room. Su-Hwan spoke with a genuinely apologetic expression. “This is about Eden’s activities.”

“Eden?” I repeated, my heart sinking a little.

“We are considering having you leave Introduce My Singer after next week’s episode,” he said cautiously, watching my reaction.

He was very careful with his words, but I couldn’t help feeling blindsided. Why so sudden? Was this because of the dialect mess-up? But Joo-Han said it was funny and liked it.

I tried to keep my voice steady. “Uh... why?”

“It’s not because you did anything wrong. After discussing it, we thought it might be better for you to focus more on your solo activities as Suh Hyun-Woo rather than continuing as Eden.”

My mind raced with questions. “Oh... What about Senior Reina?”

“We’ve discussed it with Reina. She was planning to wrap up the project around the same time, so you don’t need to worry. The timing is good,” he reassured me.

I had already lasted longer on Introduce My Singer than we initially planned. Supervisor Kim was worried I wouldn’t make it past the first few rounds, but I managed to secure the reappearance right each time. Therefore, interest in Eden had been growing.

With Reina personally training me, my skills improved significantly, which unfortunately led to tighter scheduling conflicts with my comeback plans.

“It was a mistake on Supervisor Kim’s part, but I also think it’s time to step down. Everyone knows you are Eden now. The important part is to transfer Eden’s skilled solo artist image to you.”

“Okay...”

“The sooner we do this, the better. Reina agreed as well,” he added.

Reina had initially planned for Eden’s second album release to coincide with taking the mask off on Introduce My Singer and the end of the Eden project. She was pleased with the success of the project, which had exceeded her expectations by far, and thought it was okay to reveal the identity sooner than planned.

“Reina said Eden turned out to be more of a star than she anticipated. The project was a success, and the timing for the reveal could be scheduled sooner.”

“...I see.”

“Since we also need to prepare for Chronos’ album, we’ve decided on this to manage your condition better. I hope you understand.”

I tried to sound more confident than I felt. “I’m okay with it as long as Senior Reina also is.”

Reina’s Eden project wasn’t just about making Eden a success. It was a test of her producing skills. If she was satisfied with her work, then my mission was a success. She seemed more than satisfied, and I was also ready to take off the mask and find some relief. Ending it early turned out to be a relief.

But there were still things I felt sad about.

“So, do I have to get eliminated in my next performance on Introduce My Singer?"

I hadn’t won yet. The thought of having to deliberately lose to leave the show was a bit disheartening and made me feel a little sad.

Su-Hwan’s eyes widened, and he shook his head vigorously. “No, absolutely not. Whether you continue is up to you. You must give it your best until the end, just like you’ve been doing.”

“That's a relief. I would’ve been really sad."

Su-Hwan looked unusually solemn. “Make sure you win in your final appearance. I believe in you, Hyun-Woo."

The next recording was scheduled for after Eden’s second album recording. I wanted to finish with a win.

***

The concept for Chronos' next album was set. It was a jazz theme, like a party in a dream, and Joo-Han said it felt like the peak of sophistication.

Joo-Han’s composing skills had been on fire lately. Even though not even a week had passed since deciding on the concept, he brought a rough draft of the song. It was a dance track with impressive trumpet and drum sounds befitting a jazz theme.

Although it was an unfinished piece with lots of adjustments needed, I recognized it instantly from the first verse. This was the song that had given Joo-Han his first Billboard Korea number one. It had changed a lot from the version I knew, but the structure was unmistakably the same.

Collaborating with Callia seemed to have greatly benefited Joo-Han, making the song feel much better than what I remembered. Although he didn’t explicitly mention it, it was clear that he was very proud of this work. Even though it was still a rough version and only shared some structural similarities with the original, I had no doubt this song would be one of Chronos' biggest hits.

With the foundation of the title track set, we started progressing with the album. All the members helped Joo-Han with the work. Meanwhile, I was back in my mask, heading out for my personal schedule.

I fiddled with the mask. “The new mask is much better. It doesn’t make my face sweat anymore.”

Eden’s manager looked at me through the rearview mirror and his face brightened. “I am glad to hear that! We made it with a more breathable material because we knew you’d be playing some games today.”

Today, we were filming a video for Oh Yoo-Wol’s UTube channel. Instead of eating or talking, we’d be playing console games. It was my first time appearing on a show focused solely on Eden without Reina, so I was a bit anxious.

Seeing me quietly staring out the window, the manager tried to reassure me. “It’s going to be fine. Reina told me to remind you to relax and have fun. Everyone knows who you are anyway. She said it would be great if you could make people laugh.”

“Yes, I will do my best to be funny.”

With only a few days left of my time as Eden, I couldn’t afford to stay frozen in anxiety. Besides, today was all about Eden. Worrying about being exposed wasn’t respectful to the people who invited me.

I had come prepared to do everything Oh Yoo-Wol asked, except sing, use dialects, or speak.